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Connections Academy

Connections Academy is an accredited online K-12 service that was originated by Sylvan Learning. The system has a virtual online classroom with certified teachers working with students.

Many states offer free tuition for Connections Academy. The service is popular for people in rural areas and who do not fit the traditional public school student profile. Some parents who considered homeschooling found Connections to be a better option.

History

Connections Academy was created by Sylvan Ventures in an effort to develop a virtual school. The first schools were in Colorado and Wisconsin. Sylvan was acquired by Apollo Investment group in 2004 and then by Sterling Group. Sterling sold Connections Academy to Pearsons in 2011.

Pearson was established in 1840 as an engineering and construction firm. They began buying publishing firms in the 1920s and began to buy publishing houses. Acquisitions include The Financial Times, Penguin, Ladybird Books and a half stake in The Economist.

In the 2000s they bought National Computer Systems, Edexcel, Knowledge Technologies and National Evaluation Systems to gain a foothold in the testing and assessment markets. In 2006, Pearsons bought Harcourt Assessment and Harcourt Education International.

In 2011 Pearsons established Pearsons College. They bought Connections Academy in the same year.

In 2012, Pearsons entered an agreement with Bertelsmann to combine Penguin Books with Random House to create the world's largest book publisher with Pearson decreasing its stake in Penguin to concentrate on the education market.